In 17 years of designing and building websites I have seen my industry change rapidly, year on year. Thankfully browser standards have caught up and we can now create fully responsive, adaptive and interactive experiences for all users.

My projects have ranged from simple brochure websites to fully transactional, ecommerce enabled systems. Although I favour bespoke development I've worked with Wordpress and Adobe Business Catalyst content management systems and more recently been heavily involved with a large scale Hubspot integrated site.

I am primarily a front-end specialist so occasionally work closely with other technical specialists to create larger scale solutions. One of these is Simon Whiteside, technical associate.

If you are interested in my technical skillset, along with html/css/sass/php/jquery I like to work with the Bootstrap framework and occasionally Foundation.

Click on the examples below for more information...

Brookscomm

How do you communicate a communications company?

This is the first phase of a brand refresh for the evolution of Chaz Brooks Communications to Brookscomm. PR and Marketing experts Brookscomm wanted to represent an extension of their service portfolio whilst retaining a link to their past identity.

Sector: PR & Marketing

Collateral: Identity and print/digital collateral

The BCC

All designers should have a not-for-profit side project...

...and this is mine. It's a happy coincidence that cycling also happens to be a big part of my life. Our local CC needed a distinct identity to protect the name and provide a cohesive, stylish team ride. Colour and design is a complex area to negotiate, you have to balance overall visbility for rider safety against maintaining brand identity, all the while ensuring you don't trip up any colour conventions within cycling (grand tour leader's jerseys, national champion colours and other CCs).

The modern wordmark, hand drawn and intended to describe a group of wheels riding in line, is paired up with a vintage feeling condensed, heavily tracked Helvetica.

HUB

A communications campaign for Equifax.

HUB is an internal document and process management resource, a place where everything you need to know resides. Equifax required an identity and significant print and digital collateral to push the resource through all levels of the business.

Sector: Consumer and business data

Collateral: Identity, UI, digital and print collateral

Connector Newsletter

Print's not dead yet...

...it's just sleeping (in digital format). Connector is a sub brand created for Triaster's user community. Triaster's marketing strategy is a stand-out example of content driven marketing. The bi-monthly Connector newsletter publication is key to this, disseminating industry articles, advice and comment to a growing audience of users and prospects. I created the identity and style guide for this and continue to produce print and digital versions six times a year.

Marylebone Town House

Exclusive London events venue

Concerto Group commissioned a logo and website for a new London events venue based in the old Hellenic Centre. I wanted to create something very modern and understated and worked up a simplified version of the actual venue building as the icon.

Triaster

An inbound marketing lead website using Hubspot

I have worked extensively with this Oxfordshire based software services consultancy producing both marketing related comms and contracted out UI design for their client base. Triaster are champions of content, providing a wealth of articles, technical advice, comment and community engagement. This website brings it all together.

Berganza Antique Jewellery

Communicating luxury and refinement

Berganza is a top London Hatton Garden Jewellers specialising in antique engagement rings. The brief was two-fold; firstly to update the framework of the site to a fully responsive, cross-device platform and secondly, to align the online branding with the retail space communicating themes of luxury and refinement. The correct choice of typography played a big part in this piece.

Portsoken Insurance

Full brand development and deployment to digital and print

This is an identity and website created for a London based insurance brokerage. The name comes from the old City of London ward of Portsoken, traditionally associated with insurance. The graphical device suggests the path of the River Thames with the P rising from the approximate location of the ward.

Gillman & Co.

Brand development and deployment to print

Typography is extremely important in my work, typefaces bring personality to a piece; they convey mood and can create a whole new dimension. I chose this Bodoni revival (Adobe's Bauer Bodoni) for a higher end retail brand aimed at independent schools, for luxury and elegance.

Sector: Retail

Collateral: Logo, stationery and playing card designs

Document / Process Management User Interfaces

Creative approach to UI...

As a retained design consultant for Triaster I provide regular support to design and build front-ends for document / process management systems for a highly impressive client base. A step further on from standard GUI design, the twist is that these often need to be quirky and highy engaging, visual pieces. In the past few years, on behalf of Triaster, I have worked for clients such as Balfour Beatty, Fujitsu Telecomms, Homeserve, Sir Robert McAlpine, Skanska, Thomson Reuters and University of Cambridge.

User Interfaces

Effective UI...

I have worked on numerous software GUIs (Graphical User Interfaces) including kisok design for Photo-Me's in-store photo management software. Sometimes the challenge is to take arbitrary concepts and communicate them in a clear, on-brand style.

Sector: Software / Consultancy

Collateral: UI design and build

Plaisterers' Hall

One of the famous London Livery Halls...

...now promoted as a top London corporate events venue, Plaisterers' Hall showcases some extraordinarily elaborate and beautiful plasterwork and wooden mouldings. The challenge to the designer was to create an identity that would communicate this theme in a modern and simple way. I have produced a great deal of collateral for this client over the years including full initial identity and guidelines, website, print and e-brochures and various other ad-hoc communications.